Stéphane Maurice Bongho-Nouarra

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Stéphane Maurice Bongho-Nouarra (June 6, 1937 – October 7, 2007) was Prime Minister of the Republic of the Congo from September 1992 to December 1992.[1]

Bongho-Nourra was born in Ouésso in Sangha Region.[1] He became Minister of Agriculture in January 1968[2][3] and was subsequently appointed as Minister of Public Works, Housing, and Transport in the government named on January 1, 1969.[4][5] However, in August 1970 he was accused of complicity in an anti-government plot, and he was sentenced to ten years in prison. He was released in 1971 and went into exile in France.[6]

Bongho-Nouarra was elected as the Second Vice-President of the 1991 National Convention, which marked the beginning of the transition to multiparty elections.[7] He was elected to the National Assembly from the Mbama constituency in Cuvette-Ouest Region in the 1992 parliamentary election. He was the leader of the Party for the Reconstruction and Development of the Congo (PRDC)[1][8] and the coordinator of the National Alliance for Democracy (AND),[9] a coalition of parties that backed Pan-African Union for Social Democracy (UPADS) candidate Pascal Lissouba in the first round of the August 1992 presidential election.[10] Following Lissouba's victory, on September 2, 1992 he named Bongho-Nouarra as Prime Minister.[1] Bongho-Nouarra's government was named on September 7.[11][12] After the opposition Union for Democratic Renewal (URD) seven-party alliance joined with the Congolese Labour Party (PCT) to form a parliamentary majority against UPADS, his government was defeated in a no-confidence vote on October 31, 1992.[11][13] Lissouba dissolved the National Assembly on November 17.[11][14] Although he wanted Bongho-Nouarra to remain in office until a new parliamentary election was held,[14][15] the opposition demanded that the National Assembly be restored and that Bongho-Nouarra's government resign; in a protest on November 30, three people were killed by security forces.[16] The army urged the appointment of a new government with a neutral prime minister and warned that it could stage a coup if the situation continued.[15][16] An agreement was reached on December 3 to form a national unity government[16] and Lissouba appointed Claude Antoine Dacosta to replace Bongho-Nouarra on December 6.[14][16]

Bongho-Nouarra left the Congo at the time of the 1997 Civil War, but returned for a national dialogue in 1998. He lived in Brussels, Belgium in poor health for several years before he died there on October 7, 2007. On October 8, Congolese President Denis Sassou-Nguesso called his death "a great loss".[1]

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c d e "Décès à Bruxelles de l’ancien Premier ministre Maurice Bongho Nouara", Planetafrique.com, October 9, 2007 (French).
  2. ^ Rémy Bazenguissa-Ganga, Les voies du politique au Congo: essai de sociologie historique (1997), Karthala Editions, page 112.
  3. ^ "Apr 1968 - President Massemba-Debat takes over Premiership. - Cabinet Reshuffle. - Other Political Developments.", Keesing's Record of World Events, Volume 14, April, 1968 Congo, Page 22633.
  4. ^ "Jan 1969 - Major Ngouabi appointed Head of State. - New Government", Keesing's Record of World Events, Volume 15, January, 1969 Congo, Page 23148.
  5. ^ Ganga, Les voies du politique au Congo: essai de sociologie historique, page 150.
  6. ^ Ganga, Les voies du politique au Congo: essai de sociologie historique, page 427.
  7. ^ Ganga, Les voies du politique au Congo: essai de sociologie historique, pages 384 and 427.
  8. ^ "MYSTERE AU CONGO", L'Humanite, February 12, 1992 (French).
  9. ^ Jean-Pascal Daloz and Patrick Quantin, Transitions démocratiques africaines: dynamiques et contraintes (1990-1994) (1997), Karthala Editions, pages 164–165.
  10. ^ "Législatives : comme si l'histoire du Congo se répétait !", Congoplus.info, May 15, 2007 (French).
  11. ^ a b c IPU-PARLINE page on the 1992 parliamentary election.
  12. ^ "Sep 1992 - New Prime Minister and Cabinet", Keesing's Record of World Events, Volume 38, September, 1992 Congo, Page 39083.
  13. ^ "Nov 1992 - Government crisis", Keesing's Record of World Events, Volume 38, November, 1992 Congo, Page 39179.
  14. ^ a b c "Dec 1992 - New government", Keesing's Record of World Events, Volume 38, December, 1992 Congo, Page 39227.
  15. ^ a b John F. Clark, "Congo: Transition and the Struggle to Consolidate", in Political Reform in Francophone Africa (1997), ed. John F. Clark and David E. Gardinier, pages 71–72.
  16. ^ a b c d I. William Zartman and Katharina R. Vogeli, "Prevention Gained and Prevention Lost: Collapse, Competition, and Coup in Congo", in Opportunities Missed, Opportunities Seized: Preventive Diplomacy in the Post-Cold War World (2000), ed. Bruce W. Jentleson, page 272.


v • d • e
Prime Ministers of the Republic of the Congo
Colonial: Opangoult • Youlou • post abolished, 1959-63 • Independent: Massemba-Débat • Lissouba • Noumazalaye • Alfred Raoul† • post abolished, 1969-73 • Lopès • Goma • Poungui • Poaty-Souchlaty • Moussa* • Goma • Milongo • Bongho-Nouarra • Claude Antoine Dacosta • Yhombi-Opango • Ganao • Kolélas • post abolished, 1997-2005 • Mvouba
* acting     † military
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